Blog
LatestArticlesVideos
Radio
LivePodcastSerialsStations
TV
Podcasts
The Glenn Beck ProgramThe Glenn Beck PodcastThe Beck Story
Fine Art
Real Estate
More
AboutCharityBooksSponsorsShopContact
SEARCH
Live Radio

©2024 MERCURY RADIO ARTS.
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

TERMS OF USE | PRIVACY POLICY

Live

Glenn's Show Prep

'I Shouldn’t Have Said That': Confederate Flag Advocate Accidentally Lets Racial Slur Slip

August 27, 2017
Staff

WRITER

Sometimes people sound reasonable right before they slip up.

On radio Friday, Glenn shared an unbelievable clip of an interview with a North Carolina man attempting to defend the Confederate flag.

Russell Walker of Aberdeen, North Carolina, attempted to bring a lawsuit against York County, South Carolina in June for removing Confederate paraphernalia from the main courtroom, WSOCTV reported. In an interview on the street, Walker explained why the Confederate flag isn’t racist, saying it was OK for people to disagree on its meaning … right before he called civil rights icon Martin Luther King, Jr., a racial slur.

The York County main courtroom used to have a Confederate flag and portraits of two Confederate generals, but they were removed during renovations. Judge Jack Kimball dismissed Walker’s suit asking for the flag and the portraits to be restored, ruling that he had no standing to file such a suit in the first place since Walker doesn’t live in South Carolina.

"You’ve got to be careful of who you’re standing next to because sometimes people will sound totally reasonable," Glenn said.

"I don’t believe it’s a symbol of racism. I don’t believe it’s a symbol of slavery," the man said of the Confederate flag. "That’s my personal view, but how they feel is their business." After his slipup, he tried to cover it with "I shouldn’t have said that."

"It’s clear that that’s the way he refers to Martin Luther King always," Glenn said of the slur. He urged Americans to think about the company they keep and to be aware of these examples of racism. "America, wake up, this stuff is exactly what our black neighbors are talking about that we never see," he said.

GLENN: All right. We have Bill O'Reilly coming up in just about a half-hour.

Also, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, who I love this guy, he is going to tell us a little bit about the latest decision regarding the Texas voter ID law. Ken Paxton will be joining us for that at the top of hour number three. I want to spend a few minutes here sharing with you a guy -- he's from South Carolina?

PAT: He's from North Carolina. But he's in South Carolina.

GLENN: Yeah. He's going down to South Carolina, and he wants to restore the Confederate flag. This is just something that I just want to play. You got to be careful. Because sometimes people will sound totally reasonable. And I want you to listen to -- I don't agree with him. But I want you to listen to -- he sounds like a pretty normal guy, until one thing slips through his lips. As he's explaining to the press that the Confederate flag is not racist and he's not a racist, listen up.

VOICE: Women feel about abortion. That's the same -- same type of symbol. Again, I don't believe it's a symbol of racism. I don't believe it's a symbol of slavery. That's my personal view. But how they feel is their business.

GLENN: Stop for a second. Stop for a second.

That sounds American.

PAT: Yeah.

GLENN: Look, I don't think so, but that's my personal view. And if you want to view it a different way, I understand that. Sounds -- sounds reasonable.

VOICE: Hey, I go down the street, I see Martin Luther Coon. I shouldn't have said that. Martin Luther King.

PAT: Oh, my.

GLENN: Stop. Stop. Stop.

STU: Good God.

PAT: Good golly!

GLENN: Okay. So you know what's amazing about this, is it's clear that that's the way he refers to Martin Luther King always.

PAT: Oh, always. Always.

GLENN: Because he wasn't trying to make a point. He's just like, oh, see, you know I see on the streets, Martin Luther Coon -- King. Oh, I shouldn't have said that.

STU: No, you shouldn't have.

GLENN: Yeah, you're right on that one. You're right on that one.

STU: No, you shouldn't have.

GLENN: And maybe not just here. You should never say those things or think those things. But apparently you do.

STU: Wow.

PAT: Yeah. But I'm not a racist. I love everybody. I mean, some of my best friends are...

STU: Are, what? Don't finish that sentence, sir.

GLENN: You know, I just want to tell you, the banks are out of control. And they're colluding with the government. And the -- and the -- and the -- and the corporations, and they're getting rich, and we're not.

And, you know, I think that everybody really kind of understands -- and if you don't agree with it, that's fine. It's just these damn Jew bank -- I mean, I shouldn't have said that. I shouldn't have said that.

STU: I shouldn't have said that. I shouldn't have said that. Darn it.

GLENN: Darn it. Darn it. No, I love the Jews. I just think they all should be shoved into an -- I shouldn't have said that. Other room, I meant. That's what I meant.

STU: It's incredible.

GLENN: Because I'm going to give them cake.

It's crazy.

PAT: Your colors are shining through.

STU: Yeah, that's really, really -- and I will say that's part -- that is an effect of the way -- I am 100 percent behind people who say, "Let's out these white supremacists. Let's mock them. Let's expose their viewpoints." You know, there's these weird things now, where they're like -- there's these Twitter accounts that are taking pictures of the people in the rallies, and they're trying to give them consequences at their jobs and all those other things.

You know -- you know, those are weird.

GLENN: Yeah, I know.

STU: But what that does in the end is put these people back in the closet.

GLENN: Back in the closet.

STU: They don't admit it. I'd rather hear these idiot -- I'd rather watch every one of them walk down the street with a torch because, instead of this --

GLENN: Right. I want to know who they are. I want to know who they are.

STU: I want to know who they are. So I can avoid them.

GLENN: Yes.

PAT: And it's interesting too, because a lot of them are proud of it. They don't have any problem being racist. They're proud of it.

STU: Yeah.

GLENN: Well, I will tell you this, this should tell white people -- you know, you probably -- I've told this story before, and I don't remember what city it was in. And I don't want to say because I don't remember for sure. But I was there with the -- I think the chief of police, the head of this theater, and somebody else. Maybe somebody from the mayor's office. I don't even remember. And I'm standing backstage, and we're talking -- were you there, Pat?

PAT: No. But it was in Louisville --

GLENN: So I -- it was --

STU: I shouldn't have said that.

GLENN: No, it wasn't. It actually wasn't.

PAT: It wasn't there. It was in Nova Scotia.

GLENN: No, seriously, it was not in Louisville.

STU: Legitimately, I do remember where it was, and it was not Louisville.

GLENN: Yeah. And so I'm standing backstage. And they said, "We're on CST." I said, "I like to start the shows on time. You know, people come here. Let's start on time. And I can actually run over, I hear, from time to time. So let's start on time." And the head of theater and the sheriff and the police or whatever, they're all standing around, and they said, "Well, you're on CST here." And I said, "What's CST?" And they said, "You know, Colored Standard Time. Coloreds never run on time." And I'm like, "What? What? What?" I mean, I couldn't believe it.

And this kind of thing where this guy is talking and he sounds kind of reasonable --

JEFFY: Yeah.

GLENN: -- warning. That should be a warning for you to wake up on who you're standing next to. They might sound reasonable, but they very well may not be. And also, America, wake up. This stuff is exactly what our black neighbors are talking about that we never see.

Civics isn’t optional—America's survival depends on it

JEFF KOWALSKY / Contributor | Getty Images

Every vote, jury duty, and act of engagement is civics in action, not theory. The republic survives only when citizens embrace responsibility.

I slept through high school civics class. I memorized the three branches of government, promptly forgot them, and never thought of that word again. Civics seemed abstract, disconnected from real life. And yet, it is critical to maintaining our republic.

Civics is not a class. It is a responsibility. A set of habits, disciplines, and values that make a country possible. Without it, no country survives.

We assume America will survive automatically, but every generation must learn to carry the weight of freedom.

Civics happens every time you speak freely, worship openly, question your government, serve on a jury, or cast a ballot. It’s not a theory or just another entry in a textbook. It’s action — the acts we perform every day to be a positive force in society.

Many of us recoil at “civic responsibility.” “I pay my taxes. I follow the law. I do my civic duty.” That’s not civics. That’s a scam, in my opinion.

Taking up the torch

The founders knew a republic could never run on autopilot. And yet, that’s exactly what we do now. We assume it will work, then complain when it doesn’t. Meanwhile, the people steering the country are driving it straight into a mountain — and they know it.

Our founders gave us tools: separation of powers, checks and balances, federalism, elections. But they also warned us: It won’t work unless we are educated, engaged, and moral.

Are we educated, engaged, and moral? Most Americans cannot even define a republic, never mind “keep one,” as Benjamin Franklin urged us to do after the Constitutional Convention.

We fought and died for the republic. Gaining it was the easy part. Keeping it is hard. And keeping it is done through civics.

Start small and local

In our homes, civics means teaching our children the Constitution, our history, and that liberty is not license — it is the space to do what is right. In our communities, civics means volunteering, showing up, knowing your sheriff, attending school board meetings, and understanding the laws you live under. When necessary, it means challenging them.

How involved are you in your local community? Most people would admit: not really.

Civics is learned in practice. And it starts small. Be honest in your business dealings. Speak respectfully in disagreement. Vote in every election, not just the presidential ones. Model citizenship for your children. Liberty is passed down by teaching and example.

Samuel Corum / Stringer | Getty Images

We assume America will survive automatically, but every generation must learn to carry the weight of freedom.

Start with yourself. Study the Constitution, the Bill of Rights, and state laws. Study, act, serve, question, and teach. Only then can we hope to save the republic. The next election will not fix us. The nation will rise or fall based on how each of us lives civics every day.

Civics isn’t a class. It’s the way we protect freedom, empower our communities, and pass down liberty to the next generation.

This article originally appeared on TheBlaze.com.

'Rage against the dying of the light': Charlie Kirk lived that mandate

PHILL MAGAKOE / Contributor | Getty Images

Kirk’s tragic death challenges us to rise above fear and anger, to rebuild bridges where others build walls, and to fight for the America he believed in.

I’ve only felt this weight once before. It was 2001, just as my radio show was about to begin. The World Trade Center fell, and I was called to speak immediately. I spent the day and night by my bedside, praying for words that could meet the moment.

Yesterday, I found myself in the same position. September 11, 2025. The assassination of Charlie Kirk. A friend. A warrior for truth.

Out of this tragedy, the tyrant dies, but the martyr’s influence begins.

Moments like this make words feel inadequate. Yet sometimes, words from another time speak directly to our own. In 1947, Dylan Thomas, watching his father slip toward death, penned lines that now resonate far beyond his own grief:

Do not go gentle into that good night. / Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

Thomas was pleading for his father to resist the impending darkness of death. But those words have become a mandate for all of us: Do not surrender. Do not bow to shadows. Even when the battle feels unwinnable.

Charlie Kirk lived that mandate. He knew the cost of speaking unpopular truths. He knew the fury of those who sought to silence him. And yet he pressed on. In his life, he embodied a defiance rooted not in anger, but in principle.

Picking up his torch

Washington, Jefferson, Adams — our history was started by men who raged against an empire, knowing the gallows might await. Lincoln raged against slavery. Martin Luther King Jr. raged against segregation. Every generation faces a call to resist surrender.

It is our turn. Charlie’s violent death feels like a knockout punch. Yet if his life meant anything, it means this: Silence in the face of darkness is not an option.

He did not go gently. He spoke. He challenged. He stood. And now, the mantle falls to us. To me. To you. To every American.

We cannot drift into the shadows. We cannot sit quietly while freedom fades. This is our moment to rage — not with hatred, not with vengeance, but with courage. Rage against lies, against apathy, against the despair that tells us to do nothing. Because there is always something you can do.

Even small acts — defiance, faith, kindness — are light in the darkness. Reaching out to those who mourn. Speaking truth in a world drowning in deceit. These are the flames that hold back the night. Charlie carried that torch. He laid it down yesterday. It is ours to pick up.

The light may dim, but it always does before dawn. Commit today: I will not sleep as freedom fades. I will not retreat as darkness encroaches. I will not be silent as evil forces claim dominion. I have no king but Christ. And I know whom I serve, as did Charlie.

Two turning points, decades apart

On Wednesday, the world changed again. Two tragedies, separated by decades, bound by the same question: Who are we? Is this worth saving? What kind of people will we choose to be?

Imagine a world where more of us choose to be peacemakers. Not passive, not silent, but builders of bridges where others erect walls. Respect and listening transform even the bitterest of foes. Charlie Kirk embodied this principle.

He did not strike the weak; he challenged the powerful. He reached across divides of politics, culture, and faith. He changed hearts. He sparked healing. And healing is what our nation needs.

At the center of all this is one truth: Every person is a child of God, deserving of dignity. Change will not happen in Washington or on social media. It begins at home, where loneliness and isolation threaten our souls. Family is the antidote. Imperfect, yes — but still the strongest source of stability and meaning.

Mark Wilson / Staff | Getty Images

Forgiveness, fidelity, faithfulness, and honor are not dusty words. They are the foundation of civilization. Strong families produce strong citizens. And today, Charlie’s family mourns. They must become our family too. We must stand as guardians of his legacy, shining examples of the courage he lived by.

A time for courage

I knew Charlie. I know how he would want us to respond: Multiply his courage. Out of this tragedy, the tyrant dies, but the martyr’s influence begins. Out of darkness, great and glorious things will sprout — but we must be worthy of them.

Charlie Kirk lived defiantly. He stood in truth. He changed the world. And now, his torch is in our hands. Rage, not in violence, but in unwavering pursuit of truth and goodness. Rage against the dying of the light.

This article originally appeared on TheBlaze.com.

Glenn Beck resurrects the 9-12 Project to support Charlie Kirk's family

Glenn Beck is once again calling on his loyal listeners and viewers to come together and channel the same unity and purpose that defined the historic 9-12 Project. That movement, born in the wake of national challenges, brought millions together to revive core values of faith, hope, and charity.

Glenn created the original 9-12 Project in early 2009 to bring Americans back to where they were in the wake of the 9/11 attacks. In those moments, we weren't Democrats and Republicans, conservative or liberal, Red States or Blue States, we were united as one, as America. The original 9-12 Project aimed to root America back in the founding principles of this country that united us during those darkest of days.

This new initiative draws directly from that legacy, focusing on supporting the family of Charlie Kirk in these dark days following his tragic murder.

The revival of the 9-12 Project aims to secure the long-term well-being of Charlie Kirk's wife and children. All donations will go straight to meeting their immediate and future needs. If the family deems the funds surplus to their requirements, Charlie's wife has the option to redirect them toward the vital work of Turning Point USA.

This campaign is more than just financial support—it's a profound gesture of appreciation for Kirk's tireless dedication to the cause of liberty. It embodies the unbreakable bond of our community, proving that when we stand united, we can make a real difference.
Glenn Beck invites you to join this effort. Show your solidarity by donating today and honoring Charlie Kirk and his family in this meaningful way.

You can learn more about the 9-12 Project and donate HERE

The critical difference: Rights from the Creator, not the state

Bloomberg / Contributor | Getty Images

When politicians claim that rights flow from the state, they pave the way for tyranny.

Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Va.) recently delivered a lecture that should alarm every American. During a Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing, he argued that believing rights come from a Creator rather than government is the same belief held by Iran’s theocratic regime.

Kaine claimed that the principles underpinning Iran’s dictatorship — the same regime that persecutes Sunnis, Jews, Christians, and other minorities — are also the principles enshrined in our Declaration of Independence.

In America, rights belong to the individual. In Iran, rights serve the state.

That claim exposes either a profound misunderstanding or a reckless indifference to America’s founding. Rights do not come from government. They never did. They come from the Creator, as the Declaration of Independence proclaims without qualification. Jefferson didn’t hedge. Rights are unalienable — built into every human being.

This foundation stands worlds apart from Iran. Its leaders invoke God but grant rights only through clerical interpretation. Freedom of speech, property, religion, and even life itself depend on obedience to the ruling clerics. Step outside their dictates, and those so-called rights vanish.

This is not a trivial difference. It is the essence of liberty versus tyranny. In America, rights belong to the individual. The government’s role is to secure them, not define them. In Iran, rights serve the state. They empower rulers, not the people.

From Muhammad to Marx

The same confusion applies to Marxist regimes. The Soviet Union’s constitutions promised citizens rights — work, health care, education, freedom of speech — but always with fine print. If you spoke out against the party, those rights evaporated. If you practiced religion openly, you were charged with treason. Property and voting were allowed as long as they were filtered and controlled by the state — and could be revoked at any moment. Rights were conditional, granted through obedience.

Kaine seems to be advocating a similar approach — whether consciously or not. By claiming that natural rights are somehow comparable to sharia law, he ignores the critical distinction between inherent rights and conditional privileges. He dismisses the very principle that made America a beacon of freedom.

Jefferson and the founders understood this clearly. “We are endowed by our Creator with certain unalienable rights,” they wrote. No government, no cleric, no king can revoke them. They exist by virtue of humanity itself. The government exists to protect them, not ration them.

This is not a theological quibble. It is the entire basis of our government. Confuse the source of rights, and tyranny hides behind piety or ideology. The people are disempowered. Clerics, bureaucrats, or politicians become arbiters of what rights citizens may enjoy.

John Greim / Contributor | Getty Images

Gifts from God, not the state

Kaine’s statement reflects either a profound ignorance of this principle or an ideological bias that favors state power over individual liberty. Either way, Americans must recognize the danger. Understanding the origin of rights is not academic — it is the difference between freedom and submission, between the American experiment and theocratic or totalitarian rule.

Rights are not gifts from the state. They are gifts from God, secured by reason, protected by law, and defended by the people. Every American must understand this. Because when rights come from government instead of the Creator, freedom disappears.

This article originally appeared on TheBlaze.com.